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BiEaHBiEiraaDR 

THE    SOURCE    OF 

PLEASURABLE    SENSATIONS : 

SUBMITTED   TO   THE     EXAMINATION    OF    THE    PROFESSORS   OF 

THE  COLLEGE 

OF 

PHYSICIANS   AND    SURGEONS, 

ABD    PUBLICLY   DEFENDED    BEFORE    THEM,  IN   THE    CITY   OF 
NEW-YORK,    MARCH,    1823? 


BY  JOHN  L.  SUCKLEF, 

A  CANDIDATE  FOR  THE  DEGREE  OF  M.D. 


NEW-YORK: 

PRINTED  BY  J.  AND  J.  HARPER, 
NO.   230  PEARL-STREET. 


1823. 


PREFACE. 


The  appearance  of  novelty  may  at 
once  stamp  this  Essay  as  the  senseless 
effusion  of  a  young  theorist.  But, 
gentle  reader,  be  not  alarmed  when 
you  are  told,  there  is  no  novelty  here; 
every  fact  recorded  is  an  old  inhabit- 
ant of  this  globe;  every  conjecture 
has  been  suggested  by  wiser  and  older 
heads  than  the  author's,  and  every 
deduction  is  no  more  than  the  natural 
catenation  resulting  to  every  thinking 
mind.  The  practical  inference  which 
is  desired  to  be  inculcated  is,  that 
health  is  the  consequence  of  regularity 
in  the  secretions. 


6 

The  opinion  that  the  secretion  of 
saliva  is  the  source  of  pleasure  in 
using  masticatories,  &e.  has  been  long 
publicly  taught  by  Dr.  Mitchill.  To 
him  is  the  originality  of  the  following 
pages  due  rather  than  to  the  author; 
and  to  him  thanks  are  thus  publicly 
tendered,  not  only  for  the  subject,  but 
for  his  urbanity  in  furnishing  every 
assistance  required. 

Now,  gentle  reader,  with  an  affec- 
tionate grip,  we'll  let  the  pass-word 
be— VALE. 


When  a  person  little  accustomed  to  metaphysical  specula- 
tions is  told,  that,  in  case  of  volition,  there  are  certain  invisi- 
ble fluids  propagated  from  the  mind  to  the  organ  which  is 
moved  ;  and  that,  in  the  case  of  perception,  the  existence 
and  qualities  of  the  external  object  are  made  known  by  means 
of  species  or  phantasms,  or  images,  which  are  present  to  the 
mind  in  the  sensorium ;  he  is  apt  to  conclude,  that  the  inter- 
course between  mind  and  matter  is  left  more  mysterious 
than  he  had  supposed ;  and  that,  although  these  expressions 
may  not  convey  to  him  any  very  distinct  meaning,  their 
Import  is  perfectly  understood  by  philosophers. 

Stewart's  Elements,  p.  87. 


SECRETION 


THE    SOURCE    OF 


PLEASURABLE    SENSATIONS 


Pleasure  and  pain  are  relative  terms. 
Circumstances,  which  in  one  instance  afford 
pleasure,  would  in  another  produce  pain. 
Thus  the  man  who  has  ever  been  accustom- 
ed to  have  his  wants  supplied,  and  with  a 
nod  to  command  any  new  enjoyment  or 
gratification,  would  feel  the  severest  torture 
in  being  obliged  to  venture  out  on  a  stormy 
day — a  bad  road,  poor  horses,  and  indifferent 
entertainment  on  his  way,  would  not  fail  to 
render  a  journey,  in  his  eyes,  insupportably 
tedious  ;  while  the  beggar  enjoys,  not  only 
a  degree  of  satisfaction,  but  even  of  pleasure, 
in  being  well  clad  in  rags.  Let  the  tempest 
howl  as  it  will,  a  ride  on  an  ox-cart  would 


10 

be  to  him  a  source  of  gratification- — and 
happy  would  he  be,  if  the  publican  would 
permit  him  to  rest  his  wearied  limbs  in  the 
kitchen  corner — and  grateful  indeed  if  his 
allowance  might  be  but  the  offals  of  the  rich 
man's  table.  We  may  then  define  pleasure 
and  pain,  if  taken  together,  thus — The  one 
is  the  absence  of  the  other- — Hence  the  con- 
tented state  of  existence,  which  is  the  lot  of 
most  men,  depends  on  a  peculiar  neutrali- 
zing combination  of  these  two  ingredients.. 
The  assertion  will  not  be  found  contradictory 
to  reason  or  to  fact,  that  pleasure  relieves? 
banishes,  or  destroys  pain.  Assuming  this 
position  as  datum,  we  proceed  to  examine 
the  merits  of  the  hypothesis,  that  "  Secretion 
is  the  source  of  pleasure." 

If  we  refer  to  fact,  as  it  stands  recorded  in 
the  chronicles  of  ages,  or  as  it  appears  to  us 
in  every  day's  observation,  we  must  be  sa- 
tisfied that  a  stimulus  applied  to  any  living 
animal,  produces  pain.  The  goad  renders 
the  ox  uneasy,  and  in  order  to  change  his 


II 

situation,  he  hurries  onward  ;  thereby  gra- 
tifying the  desire  of  his  master  in  making 
more  despatch.  We  cannot  at  once  see  any 
connexion  between  the  ox-goad  and  a  sti- 
mulus, unless  we  recollect,  that  the  term  is 
derived  from  this  very  circumstance.  It 
may  be  considered  as  the  cause,  producing 
that  excitement,  which  is  the  effect  of  dead 
acting  on  living  matter.  Thus  a  stimulus  to 
the  body  is  supposed  to  accelerate  the  mo- 
tion of  the  fluids,  by  producing  an  irritation, 
which  by  sympathy,  or  some  nameless  means, 
is  communicated  to  the  vessels  containing 
them.  Hence  arise  all  the  phenomena  of  a 
rapid  circulation.  We  can  conclude  with 
the  utmost  propriety  that  a  stimulus  is  pain- 
ful ;  else  why  does  the  child  cry  when  a  pin 
or  the  nails  of  its  cross  nurse  are  goading  its 
young  and  tender  flesh  ? — why  dreads  the 
schoolboy  his  master's  ire  ? — why  screams 
he  when  the  lash  is  used  ? — why  is  not  a 
bed  of  thorns  as  comfortable  as  the  downy 
cushion  of  rovaltv  ? 


12 

Stimuli  may  be  applied  in  various  ways, 
in  each  producing  pain,  and  in  each  relieved 
by  secretion.  Extraneous  substances  in  the 
skin  induce  tumour,  redness,  and  all  the  phe- 
nomena of  inflammation,  and,  in  a  particular 
manner,  pain.  We  will  not  at  present  enter 
into  a  disquisition,  whether  pain  is  the  cause 
or  the  effect  of  inflammation — if  decided 
in  either  way,  it  will  not  militate  against  the 
assertion,  that  secretion  relieves  pain;  for 
facts  will  prove  beyond  dispute,  that  when 
pus  is  formed,  every  painful  feeling  is  re- 
moved. This  is  evident,  not  only  in  phyma, 
but  in  every  species  of  inflammation.  A 
case,  which  on  first  view  would  seem  to  be 
an  exception,  is  the  existence  of  a  collection 
of  purulent  matter  under  strong  aponeuroses, 
or  under  the  theca  of  tendons  ;  but  the  least 
enlightened  will  be  satisfied,  that  in  this  case 
the  pus  can  act  in  no  other  manner  than  as 
an  extraneous  substance,  becoming  in  itself 
a  stimulus  ;  because  at  the  commencement 
of  its  secretion  no  pain  was  perceived.    Onlv 


13 

when  the  matter  secreted  has  accumulated 
so  as  to  distend  the  firm  covering,  are  we 
sensible  of  any  disagreeable  feeling. 

Not  only  do  stimuli,  applied  to  the  skin, 
induce  secretion,  but,  when  applied  to  any 
other  parts,  they  are  succeeded  by  similar 
consequences.  Particles  of  dust  or  sand, 
when  in  contact  with  the  adnata  of  the  eye, 
cause  an  immediate  increased  flow  of  tears, 
which  at  once  relieves,  by  counteracting  the 
pain,  and  discharging  the  offending  material. 
The  irritations  produced  by  savin,  hellebore, 
and  tobacco, on  theschneiderean  membrane, 
are  followed  by  the  same  happy  effects  of  an 
increased  secretion.  We  may  add  that  all 
the  mucous  and  serous  tissues  of  the  body ; 
as  the  internal  coat  of  the  intestines,  the 
lining  membrane  of  the  urethra,  bladder, 
ureters,  and  biliary  ducts,  with  the  dura  mater, 
peritoneum,  and  pleura,  are  all  excited  to  the 
deposition  of  an  augmented  quantity  of  their 
peculiar  fluids,  on  the  application  of  any  ex- 
citement.    This  accumulated  fluid  is  not 


14 

merely  to  act  as  a  diluent  or  detergent,  as  in 
the  familiar  instances  of  the  eye  and  the  nose, 
where  the  acrid  and  offending  ingredient  is 
dissolved  or  washed  away  by  a  rush  of 
waters  which  itself  had  formed  ;  but  the 
very  formation  has  a  particular  influence : 
or  why  should  pain  be  often  relieved  by  a 
secretion  taking  place  at  a  distance  from  the 
part  afflicted  ?  Why,  in  nausea,  should  the 
saliva  be  produced  in  an  unnaturally  large 
quantity  ?  Why  is  the  perspiration  increa- 
sed ?  Why  is  nausea  produced  on  the  pas- 
sage of  a  calculus  through  the  ducts  of  the 
liver  or  kidney  r  Surely  not  to  vomit  off  the 
cause  of  agony  !  Why  does  a  strangulated 
hernia  nauseate  the  stomach  of  the  sufferer  ? 
It  may  be  answered ;  to  excite  secretions, 
and  thus  to  give  ease  by  counteracting  the 
violence  of  pain  ;  to  change  the  contortions 
of  anguish  into  the  placid  smiles  of  joy.  Had 
we  need  of  stronger  confirmation  of  our 
opinion,  to  nature  we  might  exultingly  refer. 
We  could  find,  in  her  museum  of  recorded 


15 

events  and  transpiring  actions,  the  tears  of 
the  aged,  as  well  as  those  of  the  infant,  re- 
lieving distress  of  mind  without  removing 
the  cause.  Great  indeed  is  that  grief,  which 
cannot  be  relieved  by  lachrymal  secretion. 
Well  and  truly  has  it  been  said  that  "  'tis  the 
tearless  grief  that  cuts  the  heart-strings." — 
Poverty  may  still  depress,  unkind  friends 
may  still  harass,  and  ingratitude  and  ma- 
levolence may  use  all  their  weapons  of 
hostility  ;  yet  the  tear  drowns  every  sorrow, 
and  brightens  every  gloomy  prospect. 

Let  it  not  be,  for  one  moment,  suspected 
that  we  are  blind  to  every  other  use  of  se- 
cretion— or  that  we  imagine  that  the  glan- 
dular apparatus  was  only  formed  for  the 
production  of  pleasurable  sensations — such 
an  inference  is  far  from  our  thoughts.  The 
uses  are  various,  important,  and  even  ne- 
cessary. 

In  the  stomach  a  fluid  is  formed,  possess- 
ing the  most  remarkable  properties.  With 
qualities,  neither  of  an  acid  nor  alkaline  na- 


16 

ture,  it  neutralizes  both — checks  fermenta- 
tion at  once,  and,  above  all,  produces  the 
first  change  which  dead  matter  undergoes  to 
become  living.  By  it  the  food  is  converted 
into  chyme,  from  which,  by  the  intervention 
of  another  secretion,  chyle  is  separated, 
which,  by  absorption,  enters  into  the  circu- 
lation and  becomes  living  blood.  This  fluid 
is  called  gastric  juice.  It  does  not  act  on 
living  matter,  thus  intimating,  it  would  seem, 
that  to  such  its  vivifying  influence  is  unne- 
cessary. Worms  have  lived  uninjured  for 
months  in  the  stomach,  and  the  parietes  of 
that  viscus  are  never  affected  during  life, 
though  they  may  be  corroded  after  death 
has  palsied  every  vital  principle,  save  that 
which  this  miraculous  juice  is  enabled  to 
exert. 

We  have  already  mentioned  the  detergent 
effects  of  secretions,  as  in  the  eye  and  nose  ; 
we  may  also  add  the  mucous  discharge  from 
the  intestines,  carrying  off  the  offending 
materials.     Where  the  irritant  is  so  fixed  as 


17 

aot  easily  to  be  removed,  the  quantity  of 
this  mucus  is  greatly  increased ;     and  in 
many  instances,  where  there  is  a  morbid 
cause  acting,   it  is  only  effectual   as  it  re- 
lieves the  distress  by  secretion. 

They,  in  many  instances,  form  the  most 
perfect  anti-attritions ;  as  where  parts  rub 
upon  one  another,  and  especially  on  the 
cartilages  covering  the  articulating  surfaces 
of  bones. 

Some  are  demulcent,   as  the  cerumen  of 
the  meatus  auditorius  externus :   others  are 
excrementitious,  whose  principal  use  is  to 
purify  the  system,  as  of  carbon  from  the 
lungs — of  carbon  and  saline  materials  from 
the  skin — and  of  saline  materials  from  the 
kidney.     The  carbon  is  conveyed  from  the 
lungs — where  as  an  impurity  it  is  collected 
— by  combining  with  oxygen  and  caloric, 
thereby  forming  carbonic  acid  gas.     This 
gas,    having    antiseptic    properties,    may 
prevent  the  action  of  contagion ;  hence  the 

3 


18 

plausibility  of  the  opinion  that  contagion 
affects  the  stomach  rather  than  the  lungs. 

Fat  is  another  secretion,  the  use  of  which 
is  not  exactly  known ;  but  supposed  to  be 
to  give  rotundity  of  form  to  the  animal 
machine.  Not  only  fat,  but  every  part  of 
the  body,  is  secreted  ;  as  bone,  cartilage, 
tendon,  ligament,  and  muscle.  By  this  ac- 
tion growth  is  accomplished,  and  waste 
is  continually  repaired.  Some  secretions 
are  exclusively  for  nourishment,  as  Lacta- 
tion. Other  uses  it  is  needless  here  to 
recapitulate — that  for  the  purpose  of  ge- 
neration, cannot  however  be  left  in  perfect 
silence,  inasmuch  as  it  establishes  in  a 
peculiar  manner  the  Quod  erat  Demon- 
strandum. 

In  reviewing  the  various  uses  of  secre- 
tion, we  meet  with  none  whose  only  and 
particular  use  is  gratification;  except  in- 
deed it  is  that  of  fat,  as  they  who  give 
themselves  up  to  ease  and  enjoyment,  are 


19 

most  apt  to  be  encumbered  with  this  ma- 
terial. And  the  adage,  "  Laugh  and  grow 
fat,"  would  seem  to  stamp  the  idea  with 
the  gravity  of  antiquity.  This  phrase  is 
not  to  be  slighted,  because  it  is  in  vulgar 
mouths.  It  evinces  much  just  observation. 
Look  where  we  will,  we  must  observe 
that  the  fat  man  always  possesses  an  un- 
common share  of  good  nature.  His  coun- 
tenance is  always  placid,  his  mind  always 
easy.  Yet  the  correctness  of  our  views  on 
this  subject,  does  not  rest  on  the  establish- 
ment of  the  existence  of  a  gland,  the  sole 
intention  of  which  is  giving  pleasure.  It 
comports  with  the  genius  of  man,  and 
probably  (with  reverence  be  the  assertion 
made,)  with  the  intention  of  man's  Creator, 
that  pleasure  should  be  derived  from  nothing 
but  that  which  holds  up  a  prospect  of 
usefulness.  The  debauchee  would  soon 
forsake  his  favourite  riots,  did  not  an 
inebriated  fancy  picture  to  his  mind  some 
future  benefit  as  resulting  from  his  conduct. 


20 

Our  task  would  be  finished,  if,  by  unra- 
velling the  organs  of  secretion,  we  could 
detect  the  design  of  the  great  Architect, 
Though  glands  have  been  injected,  I  had 
almost  said,  ad  infinitum;  yet  the  veil, 
which  is  partly  withdrawn  from  the  ma- 
chinery, covers  its  actions  and  sets  scrutiny 
at  defiance.  Many  theories  have  been 
formed,  and  on  this  subject  theories  may, 
for  want  of  facts,  be  allowed.  They  may 
allure  their  framers  to  give  that  attention  to 
the  operations  of  nature,  which  may  bring 
to  light  facts  in  elucidation  of  the  whole 
subject.  What  species  of  knowledge — 
what  improvements  in  the  Arts  and  Scien- 
ces, may  we  not  hope  for?  By  proper 
research  the  mysteries  of  generation  may 
yet  be  unfolded ;  but  before  mankind  can 
expect  a  developement  of  this  abstruse 
subject,  many  less  important  processes  are 
to  be  investigated.  Facts  may  at  this  day 
be  on  record,  which  only  require  the  genius 
of  a  Hervey  to  arrange  them  in  that  mode. 


21 

and  with  that  lucidus  ordo,  which  will  dissi- 
pate the  clouds  of  conjecture,  and  make 
manifest  the  true  operations  of  the  glands. 
Yet  it  is  highly  probable,  that  this  subject 
may  be  kept  concealed,  as  a  stumbling- 
block  to  materialists,  compelling  even  them 
to  bow  in  reverence  to  the  Great  First 
Cause.  In  investigating  this  subject,  how- 
ever, we  should  pay  attention  to  the  opera- 
tions of  some  gland,  v\  hose  steps  are  most 
distinct,  and  not  so  hurried  into  one  another 
as  not  to  be  distinguished.  As  we  have 
the  authority  of  a  Darwin  for  considering 
the  whole  alimentary  canal  as  a  gland,  we 
may  select  this  as  our  model.  Here  we 
behold  the  food,  whether  animal,  vegetable, 
or  a  mixture  of  both,  deposited  in  the 
stomach,   acted   upon    by  the   magnetic,* 


*  These  various  epithets  are  used  to  show  how  very  little 
we  know  about  the  kind  of  influence  exerted.  Between  mag- 
netism, galvanism,  sympathy,  and  life,  there  is  a  wide  differ- 
ence; yet  they  all  belong  to  one  certain  class  of  actions. — 
When  better  understood,  they  may  clear  up  many  mysteries, 
and  enlighten  many  subjects 


22 

galvanic,  sympathetic,  or  vivifying  influence 
of  the  gastric  juice,  and  becoming  one  ho- 
mogeneous mass — this  proceeding  into  the 
intestines  meets  with  the  bile,  which, 
combining  with  the  feculent  portion,  is 
discharged  per  anum;  while  the  chyle  is 
left  to  be  absorbed,  and  become  part  of  the 
living  system.  Here  we  observe  effects 
analogous  to,  yet  the  reverse  of,  those  which 
are  produced  by  glands  in  general.  Here 
every  variety  of  food  is  changed  into  one 
substance — chyme;  in  glands  one  sub- 
stance— blood — is  changed  into  every  va- 
riety of  material,  from  the  ivory  tusk  of 
the  elephant,  to  the  impalpable  odour  issu- 
ing from  the  musk  of  the  Asiatic  deer. 
Taking  the  alimentary  canal  as  an  inverted 
gland,  it  may  prove  to  us  the  thread  of 
Ariadne,  and  lead  us  through  the  dark 
windings  of  this  otherwise  inextricable 
labyrinth. 

Physiologists  have,  on  this  subject,  as  on 
every    other,   formed  various    hypotheses 


23 

concerning  this  process,  some  have  ima- 
gined that  glands  possess  a  peculiar  power 
of  selecting  and  separating  from  the  blood 
materials  necessary  to  form  their  particular 
secretions.  This  faculty  has,  by  the 
celebrated  Darwin,  been  dignified  with 
the  title  of  glandular  appetency — -supposing 
them  to  have  life,  desires,  and  appetites 
peculiar  to  themselves,  and  being  in  fact 
little  animals  distributed  about  the  body. 
Others,  as  Van  Helmont,  and  Vieussens, 
thought  that  fermentation  would  account 
for  all  the  phenomena.  Descartes,  Borrelli, 
and  Charleton,  supposed  the  glands  to  be 
nothing  more  than  strainers,  permitting 
only  the  finer  parts  of  the  blood  to  pass 
as  secretions,  while  the  grosser  were  re- 
tained in  the  circulation.  This  being  the 
case,  we  might  in  vain  look  for  secretions 
coarser  than  the  blood,  though  all  the  solids 
should  be  immediately  at  hand.  There 
are  others  again,  who,  observing  that 
oiled  paper  only  transmits  oil — and  paper 


24 

moistened  with  water  or  any  other  liquid, 
only  suffers  that  liquid  to  pass  through,  by 
which  it  had  been  moistened,  think  the 
secretions  are  generated  by  a  similar  eco- 
nomy. The  absurdity  of  this  is  at  once 
manifest.  It  has  also  been  supposed,  that 
the  velocity  of  the  blood  is  much  greater 
through  glands,  and  that  thus  secretion  is 
produced  ;  this  may,  in  a  degree,  be  true ; 
as  the  quality  of  the  blood  is  evidently 
changed,  under  the  excitement  of  fever. 
The  length  and  curves  of  the  vessels  in 
glands,  have  been  supposed  to  have  a 
particular  effect  essential  to  secretion  ;  but 
a  straight  vessel,  one  line  in  length,  can 
work  as  effectual  change  on  the  fluid  pass- 
ing through,  as  can  be  done  by  the  most 
convoluted  and  longest  vessels.  Witness 
the  pure  water  absorbed  by  plants  from 
the  earth — before  it  has  proceeded  one 
line  in  the  vessels  of  the  vegetable,  it  be- 
comes sap  of  a  peculiar  kind — We  must 
refer,   not  to  a  contorted  arrangement  of 


25 

vessels,  but  to  a  peculiar  action,  for  an 
explanation  of  this  subject.  Whether  this 
peculiar  action  can  be  separated  from  life, 
we  will  not  pretend  to  say ;  but  it  is  more 
probable,  it  is  the  exertion  of  life  alone, 
which  effects  such  mighty  changes.  That 
same  cause  which  converts  the  ovum  into 
a  foetus,  the  chyle  into  blood,  also  produces 
a  conversion  in  the  blood,  making  it  ma- 
terially differ  in  all  its  properties.  Here 
language  limits  the  expansion  of  our  ideas  ; 
for  want  of  a  term  to  express  this  peculiar 
action,  we  must  confine  our  inquiries  to 
this  boundary.  The  most  plausible  ex- 
pression that  has  been  adopted,  is  sym- 
pathy ;  but  this  is  too  vague,  and  too 
general  to  be  retained  in  the  language  of 
the  experimental  inquirer — it  may  "be- 
cloud his  soul,  and  prevent  her  from  piercing 
into  nature's  arcana." 

Glands  have  received  different  names 
from  various  circumstances.  But,  as  might 
be  expected,  we  look  in  vain  to  this  no- 

4 


26 

menclature  for  an  explanation  of  their 
modus  operandi.  We  hear  of  the  conglo- 
bate or  lymphatic — the  conglomerate  or 
a  collection  of  a  number  of  small  glands 
in  a  common  envelope.  Late  writers  have 
called  such  as  consist  of  a  number  of  sacs, 
or  of  vessels  convoluted  in  the  form  of  sacs, 
Acinous — the  parotid,  and  other  salivary 
glands,  and  the  pancreas,  are  of  this  class. 
The  structure  of  the  liver  is  called  penicil- 
lous — where  the  vessels  converge  together 
like  a  pencil  of  light.  Cryptse,  Follicles, 
and  Lacunae,  bedew  every  surface  with 
a  secretion.  From  these  we  can  obtain 
no  elucidation  of  our  subject ;  but  some 
future  generation  may  hail  the  time  when 
names  shall  be  given,  not  merely  to  dis- 
tinguish one  from  another ;  but  to  denote 
the  gland,  from  the  quality  of  its  action. 
Some  Lavoisier  may  yet  arise,  to  render 
the  paths  of  adenology  as  bright  as  those 
of  chvmistrv. 


27 

From  the  imperfect  knowledge  our 
best  physiologists  have  of  secretion,  we 
might  in  vain  seek  among  their  works  for 
any  thing  conclusive  on  the  subject  under 
present  consideration.  Far  be  it  from  us 
to  attempt  establishing  any  theory  on 
glandular  action.  "  Be  ours  an  humbler 
task," — to  cull  from  nature's  garden  a 
few  flowers  of  truth,  to  decorate  the  asser- 
tion, that  pleasure  is  one  of  the  effects  of 
secretion. 

Let  us  inquire  what  inferences  may  be 
drawn  from  manners  and  customs.  If 
we  investigate  the  habits  of  mankind,  we 
must  remark,  that  all  the  gratifications  to 
which  he,  in  every  state  of  society,  accus- 
toms himself,  are  such  as  cause  increased 
secretion.  This  can  be  illustrated  by  nu- 
merous examples.  The  every-day  practice 
of  chewing  tobacco  need  only  be  men- 
tioned, and  our  thoughts  recur  to  the 
immense  quantity  of  saliva  induced  by 
the  quid.     Perhaps  it    would   be    within 


28 

bounds  to  say,  that  eight  ounces  of  super 
fluous  spittle  is  secreted,  per  diem,  by  every 
tobacco-chewer.       Some,     rather     giving 
credit    to    the    narcotic    effects    on     the 
nervous  system,  may  indeed  object  to  the 
secretion   being  referred  to  as  a  cause  of 
the    enjoyment.     That    there   is   a  consi- 
derable   narcotic    effect    produced,    none 
will  attempt  to  deny ;    but,  as  this  habit 
becomes    more    confirmed,    the    narcotic 
power  must    lessen ;    yet   the   desire   and 
the     enjoyment     are     greatly     enhanced ; 
because    the   glands   are   equally   affected 
by  the   stimulus,    after   repeated   applica- 
tions,  as  at  first.     And   let  it  be  remem- 
bered, that  in  some  countries,  masticatories 
are    used,    which    produce    no    narcotic 
effect.     This  is  the   case  in    the  Eastern 
world,    and   particularly  in    China — here 
chinam,  or    quick-lime,  is  in  general  use 
to  promote  the  salival  secretion,  and  happy 
does  the  man  think  himself,  who  can  pro- 
cure a  sufficiency   of  this   article,  though 


29 

its  use  is  attended  with  the  total  destruc- 
tion of  all  the  parts  of  his  teeth,  which 
project  beyond  their  sockets.  Quick-lime 
is  also  in  general  use  among  the  inha- 
bitants of  Quito  and  Popayan,  as  we 
are  informed  by  Messrs.  Humboldt  and 
Bonpland — "  Quick-lime  is  sold  in  the 
public  markets  for  chewing,  as  an  article 
of  the  first  necessity."  In  the  South  Sea 
Islands,  it  is  used  with  the  Piper  Siriboa, 
and  in  South  Auierica,  it  is  combined  with 
the  Erythroxylum  Perunanum.  We  can- 
not pass  over  in  silence  the  universal  prac- 
tice, in  Eastern  climes,  of  chewing  the 
betel.  A  description  of  this  psyalagogue 
preparation,  is  recorded  by  Dr.  Mitchill 
and  Dr.  Miller,  in  one  of  their  numbers 
of  the  Medical  Repository  for  the  year 
1806.  The  account,  which  is  extracted 
from  a  paper  of  M.  Peron  on  the  subject, 
we  here  transcribe.  After  a  few  pertinent 
remarks  on  the  diseases  of  the  climate,  it 
thus    proceeds — "  What    the    tepid   bath. 


30 

strong  tea,  ambergris,  cardamoms,  and 
other  aromatic  seeds,  cloves,  ginger,  and 
other  warm  and  stimulating  spices,  have 
been  unable  to  accomplish,  has,  as  M. 
Peron  observes,  been  happily  effected  by 
a  composition  of  four  ingredients,  called 
from  the  name  of  one  of  them,  Betel.  This, 
when  chewed  and  swallowed,  restores  to 
the  mouth,  stomach,  and  intestines,  and  to 
the  great  glands  connected  with  them,  a  due 
degree  of   vigour    and   secretory   power. 

"  Betel  is  usually  composed  of  the  areck 
nut,  (areca  catechu)  two  parts,  of  quick- 
lime one  part,  of  the  burning  leaf  of 
a  species  of  pepper  (piper  betel)  and  of 
the  leaves  of  tobacco  one  part.  These 
are  well  mixed  together,  to  form  a  masti- 
catory, or  quid  for  the  mouth :  and  the 
experience  of  its  utility  is  so  well  esta- 
blished, that  the  natives  have  introduced 
it  into  general  use  in  all  hot  climates, 
from    the  Moluccas  to  the  Yellow  River; 


31 

and  from  the  Ganges  and  Indus  to  the 
shores  of  the  Black  Sea.  It  is  not,  however, 
equally  prevalent  in  all  these  countries ; 
for  at  Constantinople,  for  example,  betel 
is  more  an  article  of  luxury  among  the  rich, 
than  a  national  custom." 

Let  us  return  to  our  own  country,  and 
we  shall  find  the  antiquated  matron,  as 
comfortable  over  a  few  embers,  seated  on 
a  tripod  of  poverty,  if  she  only  have  her 
pinch  of  snuff,  as  she  would  be,  without 
this  sternutatory  dose,  seated  in  the  chair 
of  state — a  compeer  with  empresses. 
Though  Boreas  howls  without,  and  her 
raiment  is  tattered  and  rusty  with  age; 
yet,  by  applying  to  her  nostrils  pulverized 
tobacco,  which  induces  secretion,  she  is 
happy,  and  enjoys  all  the  corner  mem 
appertaining  to  her  lot.  And  the  poor 
old  bachelor  drowns  the  sorrows  of  an 
unfortunate  love-scrape,  and  whiffs  off  the 
painful  traces  of  a  rejected  suit,  in  a 
whirligig  of  tobacco  smoke.     And,  if  asked 


32 

the  best  method  of  rendering  the  thorny 
paths  of  life  smooth  and  easy,  he  replies — 

"  There  certainly  are  powers  of  doing  this, 

In  some  degree  at  least, — for  instance,  drinking 

Champaign  will  bathe  the  heart  awhile  in  bliss, 
And  keep  the  head  a  little  time  from  thinking 

Of  cares  or  creditors — the  best  wine  in  town 

Tou'll  get  from  Lynch — the  cash  must  be  paid  down. 

But  if  you  are  a  Bachelor,  like  me, 

And  spurn  all  chains,  even  though  made  of  roses, 
I'd  recommend  segars — there  is  a  free 

And  happy  spirit,  that  unseen  reposes 
On  the  dim  shadowy  clouds  that  hover  o'er  you, 
When  smoking  quietly,  with  a  warm  fire  before  you." 

Croaker. 

Our  bachelor  is  more  in  character,  as  a 
rejected  lover  and  poet,  than  as  a  phi- 
losopher; or  he  would  not  ascribe  the 
pleasant  effects  of  smoking  to  merely 
watching  the  "  clouds  that  hover  o'er" 
him.  The  pleasure  must  arise  from  the 
increased  quantity  of  saliva — or  how  can 
this  practice  be  enjoyed  in  the  dark.  And 
to  the  advocates  of  the  narcotic  power, 
it  might  be  answered  that  there  is 
greater  gratification   in   puffing  the    mild 


S3 

and  fragrant  Spanish  segar,  than  the 
narcotic  and  strong-scented  American. 

Drinking  spirituous  and  vinous  liquors, 
doubtless  adds  to  enjoyment  by  the  in- 
crease  of  secretions  in  the  alimentary 
canal;  but  we  are  willing  to  acknowledge, 
that  it  derives  great  share  of  pleasure, 
from  the  benumbing  influence  exerted 
over  the  nervous  system. 

The  gratification  of  a  banquet  is,  in 
a  great  measure,  attributable  to  the  in- 
creased secretions  induced  by  the  con- 
diments of  the  table.  Hence  the  most 
savoury  and  stimulating  articles  have 
become  the  most  palatable.  Will  any 
one  pretend  to  assert,  that  peppers,  mus- 
tard, and  pickles,  are  relished  on  account 
of  their  flavour  ?  As  well  might  he  affirm, 
that  assafcetida,  that  devil's  dung,  pleases 
the  taste  by  its  flavour.  We  know  that  in 
some  countries,  this  offensive  gum  is 
used  as  a  choice  condiment;  and  its 
agreeableness  can  only  be  accounted   for 


St 

by  reference  to  the  principle  which  we  are 
endeavouring  to  establish. 

Amusements  of  all  sorts,  as  riding  on 
horseback,  hunting,  fowling,  and  all  the 
gymnastic  exercises,  are  resorted  to  by 
mankind,  to  whom  they  are  beneficial, 
inasmuch  as  they  have  a  stimulating 
action  on  the  glandular  apparatus. 

This  doctrine  is  built  upon  a  rocky  foun- 
dation, in  the  very  bosom  of  nature. 
Proofs  of  its  truth,  are  developed  not  only 
in  the  inclinations  of  the  votary  of  pleasure  ; 
but  in  the  actions  of  the  man  of  business^ 
in  every  incident  of  life.  Affection,  we 
might  say,  even  affection,  is  engendered  and 
regulated,  in  a  great  degree,  by  secretion. 
Lest  our  position  should  seem  too  much 
in  advance,  we  refer  again  to  phenomena 
— they  will  prove  we  merit  every  inch 
of    ground    which   we   have    assumed. 

Let  us  first  examine  the  human  family. 
It  is  an  old  report,  and  one  accepted  by 
all   ages,    that    parental    is    greater   than 


SB 

filial  affection — may  we  not  deduce  rea- 
sons for  this,  from  our  view  of  secretions? 
Man  is  a  selfish  animal,  only  pleased  with 
what  directly  or  indirectly  conduces  to 
his  gratification,  and  inimical  to  every 
thing  that  detracts  from  his  own  enjoy- 
ment. Histories  of  individuals  and 
nations  establish  this  fact.  Custom,  or 
rather  fashion,  making  all  mankind  bow 
to  its  dominion,  bids  man  love  his  offspring. 
In  obedience  to  this  mandate,  his  affection, 
becoming  a  habit,  continues  throughout 
life.  It  may  be  denied  that  custom  pro- 
duces affection  between  the  parent  and 
child.  Perhaps  not  in  every  instance, 
but  then  we  must  refer  to  a  more  selfish 
principle,  a  desire  of  self-aggrandizement 
in  one's  posterity.  Every  father  doubtless 
anticipates  the  continuance,  if  not  the 
immortality  of  his  name,  by  means  of  his 
offspring.  Napoleon's  father,  no  doubt, 
would  have  smiled  (had  he  been  alive) 
to  hear  of  the  victories  of  his  son.     And 


36 

the  throb  of  anguish,  which  might  ration- 
ally be  supposed  to  cause  the  old  man's 
breast  to  heave,  on  hearing  of  the  exile's 
death,  would  soon  subside,  on  reflecting 
that  the  name  of  Bonaparte  would  be 
familiar  to  the  latest  ages.  But  to  draw 
arguments  m  support  of  our  cause  from 
the  human  species,  it  would  be  necessary 
that  the  father  should  view  his  offspring 
with  indifference;  but  this  is  prevented 
by  other  and  stronger  motives  than  the 
mere  bent  of  inclination.  Man  being  then 
so  much  under  the  control  of  fashion, 
habit,  and  self-love,  we  can  draw  no  con- 
clusive arguments  from  this  noble  animal 
— except  we  infer  that  the  mother,  always 
evincing  a  greater  degree  of  affection  for 
her  offspring  than  the  father,  evidences  a 
grateful  remembrance  of  the  pleasure  af- 
forded in  the  secretion  of  milk. 

If  we  descend  to  the  lower  orders  of 
animals,  ranging  the  fields  with  natural 
liberty,  unrestrained    either  by  fashion  or 


37 

by  folly,  and  not  obliged  to  conform  to 
this  or  that  rule,  because  it  may  happen 
to  be  established  by  custom,  we  shall  be 
enabled  to  draw  an  unbiassed  conclusion. 
Our  proposition,  that  affection  is  qualified 
by  the  pleasure  imparted  by  secretion,  will 
receive  confirmation  from  this  source. 

In  every  species  of  the  brute  creation,  the 
male  progenitor  is  as  heedless  of  his  off- 
spring, as  if  it  possessed  no  ties  of  consan- 
guinity. Not  only  does  he  treat  his 
young  with  the  most  contemptuous 
neglect;  but  in  many  instances  he  proves 
its  deadliest  foe.  The  male  of  some  has 
been  known  to  devour  a  whole  brood 
of  little  ones — showing  most  wonderful 
affection,  in  snatching  the  innocents  from 
a  world  of  misery !  And  the  female  of 
all  brute  animals,  extends  her  affection 
no  fan  her  than  the  term  of  her  lactation — 
no  sooner  does  the  udder  cease  to  secrete, 
than  the  satiated  mother  becomes  the 
bitterest  enemy   to   those  she  loved,  sup- 


ported,  and  protected,  while  they  excited 
in  her  a  secretion.  Oviparous  animals 
seem  not  to  be  comprehended  in  this  rule. 
From  the  eagle  to  the  humming-bird,  they 
labour  to  support  their  helpless  young ; 
thus  exhibiting  examples  of  gratitude 
for  past  favours.  Though  the  secretion 
which  gave  life,  is  now  only  existent  in 
their  memory,  the  grateful  remembrance 
still  lingers  to  bring  forth  all  the  kind  offi- 
ces of  friendship  and  affection.  From 
these  well  may  we  obtain  beautiful 
emblems  of  conjugal  and  parental  affec- 
tion. While  we  direct  the  husband  to 
see  how  cheerfully  the  dove  participates 
in  all  the  domestic  toils  of  its  mate  ;  we 
may  attract  the  attention  of  the  child, 
to  behold  the  youthful  stork,  proud  to 
bear  its  aged  parent  from  place  to  place. 

But  if  it  be  denied  that  secretions 
relieve  the  pain  induced  by  stimuli,  be- 
cause gratification  is  the  intention  of  no 
particular  one  ;   or  if  it  be  affirmed,  that 


39 

tobacco  and  betel  chewing  is  not  resorted 
to  for  the  sake  of  exciting  glandular    ac- 
tion ;     or  if    it   be   averred  that  affection 
is  not  at  all  enhanced  by   secretion ;   yet 
it  must  be  allowed,  that  suppressed  secre- 
tion   causes    pain.      A   sudden     exposure 
to   a   great    change   of    temperature,   has 
ever   been    considered   one   of    the    most 
prolific  causes  of   disease.     If  we  examine 
the  effect  of  this  change  on  the  constitution, 
we  must,  without    hesitation,  conclude   it 
to     be    injurious,    only    inasmuch    as     it 
checks   perspiration— the   immediate   con- 
sequence  of  which   is,   an   unaccountable 
uneasiness,  that  impairs   every  action,  and 
renders     every   exertion    disagreeable.     If 
relief  be  not  obtained,  a  general  fever,   or 
disease   of  the   whole   system,   is  sure  to 
follow  ;   or  the  blood-vessels,  in  vain  seek- 
ing to  relieve  themselves  by  their  natural 
outlets,  the  pores  of  the  skin,   hurry  their 
contents  to  some  particular  part,  and  pro- 
duce topical  inflammation.     Every  physi- 


40 

cian  is  aware  how  frequently  inflammation 
of  the  peritoneum,  intestines,  uterus,  or 
some  other  internal  viscus  supervenes, 
on  the  suppression  of  the  perspirable 
matter.  Must  we  refer  this  to  the  selfish- 
ness of  every  particle  of  living  matter, 
seeking  opportunity  of  easing  the  burthen 
from  its  own  shoulders  by  oppressing  its 
harmless  neighbour  ?  Throughout  all  living 
matter  we  certainly  see  this  disposition 
predominant.  The  beggar,  as  well  as  the 
conqueror,  demonstrates  this  truth — though 
in  the  one,  his  sphere  of  action  being  con- 
tracted, it  is  not  as  observable  as  in  the 
other.  As  it  is  one  of  the  characteristics 
of  selfishness  to  destroy  gratification  in 
others,  when  one's  own  has  been  in- 
fringed, shall  we  suppose  that  the  enraged 
blood,  deprived  of  its  usual  gratification 
of  taking  an  airing  through  the  glands 
of  the  skin — flies  directly  to  vent  its  rage 
on  some  internal  glandular  organ  ?  Or 
may  we  not  rather  suppose  that,  all  in 


good*  nature,  it  may  hope  to  produce  the 
pleasant  effects  of  copious  secretion  by 
visiting  other  glands.  Its  intentions  may 
be  good  ;  but  its  deeds  have  the  most  perni- 
cious tendency.  Thus  when  the  liver  re- 
ceives this  ungracious  visit,  instead  of  an 
increased  quantity  of  bile  being  produced, 
in  most  instances,  inflammation  is  the  con- 
sequence ;  or  if  the  kidneys  are  so  unfor- 
tunate as  to  be  visited,  instead  of  an 
increased  flow  of  urine,  we  have  nephritis 
with  all  its  painful  symptoms.  Not  only 
does  checked  perspiration  occasion  the 
most  distressing  feelings ;  but  the  suppres- 
sion of  any  accustomed  discharge  will 
more  or  less  derange  every  pleasurable 
sensation.  If  the  mucus  of  the  intestines 
or  the  bile  be  withheld,  not  only  is  an 
indomitable  constipation  the  result,  but 
frequently  the  whole  habit  is  so  vitiated 
that  every  thought  of  pleasure  is  so 
tinctured  with  pain,  as  to  afford  no  delight. 
While  a  suppressed  secretion  of  urine  or 
6 


42 

saliva  is  often  followed  by  apoplexy,  do 
we  offer  any  violence  to  truth  in  affirming 
that  health  depends,  in  a  very  great  degree, 
on  the  due  continuance  of  all  ordinary 
secretions? 

Here  we  might  venture  the  opinion,  that  a 
checked  secretion  of  pus  causes  hectic  fever. 
Though  it  might  offend  the  creed  of  those 
who  have  sworn  allegiance  to  the  theory, 
that  this  fever  is  occasioned  by  an  absorp- 
tion of  matter,  we,  being  yoked  to  no  hypo- 
thesis, 

Nullius  addictus  jurare  in  verba  magistri, 

are  at  liberty  to  give  that  the  prefer- 
ence which  phenomena  and  facts  seem 
most  to  authorize.  How  analogous  is  the 
incipient  stage  of  forming  pus  to  the  pre- 
monitory symptoms  of  a  hectic  paroxysm  ! 
In  each  there  is  a  chill,  which  is  neither 
owing  to  the  disposition  to  form  pus  in  the 
one  case,  nor  to  the  accession  of  fever  in 
the  other.  In  one  instance  the  morbid  cause, 
operating  on  the  nervous  system,  is  removed 


43 

by  the  formation  of  pus ;  in  the  other,  this 
secretion  not  existing,  or  not  being  sufficient 
to  bring  the  relief  required,  the  morbid  cause 
increases  in  energy,  or  rather  continues  to 
disease  the  nervous  energy  of  the  system, 
till  the  flushed  cheek  and  emaciated  form 
whisper  in  our  ear 

Pallida  mors  aequo  pulsat  pede  pauperum  tabernas, 
Regumque  turres. 

In  this  case  the  secretion  of  pus  may  be  in- 
sufficient in  two  ways.  Istly,  in  comparison 
with  the  strength  of  the  morbid  cause — 
2dly,  in  being  checked.  This  last  is  the  most 
common  ;  it  is  very  liable  to  happen  on  the 
admission  of  the  external  air  by  an  opening 
made  into  an  abscess.  The  operations  of 
the  secreting  surface,  which  may  be  termed 
a  temporary  gland,  are  thus  completely  de- 
ranged. This  we  must  conclude  to  be  a 
fact,  if  any  analogical  conclusion  can  be 
drawn  from  the  effect  we  see  produced  on 
the  absorbents  ;  for  it  is  evident  that  their 
action  is  checked,  if  not  entirely  suppressed : 


44 

as  is  evinced  by  the  quantity  discharged. 
Before  the  opening,  nearly  an  equilibrium 
was  maintained  between  the  absorbents  and 
exhalents  ;   for  no  one  will  pretend  to  say, 
that  none  was  absorbed  before  the  admission 
of  atmospheric  air.     The  farther  prosecu- 
tion of  this  subject,  however,  would  be  fo- 
reign to  the  immediate  object  of  this  paper. 
How  has  man  become  the  slave  of  habit, 
but  by  the   influence   which  habits  have 
on  the  regularity  of  secretion  ?    Man  is 
indeed  a  bundle  of  habits ;   and,  if  deprived 
of    a  diversion  he  had  taken  at  a  parti- 
cular time,  he  becomes  not  only  chagrined 
by  disappointment,  but  absolutely  unwell. 
The  tobacco  chewer,  if  not  able  to  obtain 
his  quid  at  the  accustomed  time,  becomes 
liable  to  the  vertiginous  affections  of  disease ; 
and,  in  time,  if  his  desires  be  not  gratified, 
becomes    almost    delirious.      The    betel- 
chewer  and  the  snuff-taker,  the  drunkard 
and  the  glutton,  the  man  of  pleasure  and 
the  anchorite — all  become,  in  like  manner. 


45 

affected,  if  deprived  of  their  ordinary  sti- 
mulus, at  the  usual  time  of  its  application. 
They  all  feel  a  "  pain  of  want ;"  a  pain 
arising  not  exactly  from  suppressed ;  but 
from  an  unexcited  secretion.  The  dis- 
agreeable sensations  of  hunger  and 
thirst  may  be  explained  on  this  principle. 
The  following  fact  will  go  far  to  prove  this 
assertion.  If  a  man,  habituated  to  take 
his  dinner  at  a  certain  hour,  be  so  placed 
by  circumstances,  as,  at  the  given  hour, 
to  be  totally  unable  to  obtain  this  meal — 
he  will  feel  uncomfortable,  or,  in  other 
words,  hungry  :  now,  if  he  but  swallow  a 
small  piece  of  biscuit  or  dry  bread,  he  will 
be  relieved  from  these  feelings  for  several 
hours.  In  this  instance  the  glandular  ar- 
rangement of  the  gastric  arteries  being 
excited  into  a  secretory  action,  relief  is 
immediately  afforded.  The  opinion  that 
the  peculiar  sensations  of  hunger  and  thirst 
arise  from  a  tension  of  the  ligaments  of 
the  liver,  hardly  deserves  notice — and  that 


46 

hypothesis,  which  referred  these  sensations 
to  an  accumulation  of  the  gastric  liquor,  is 
satisfactorily  confuted  by  the  observation, 
that  "the  pain  of  want  is  greater  in  acqui- 
red than  natural  habits."  {Karnes.)  Is  it 
an  increased  flow  of  saliva  that  makes  the 
smoker  long  for  his  segar  ?  and  who  will 
not  admit  the  analogy  between  his  longings 
and  the  restless  feelings  of  a  hungry  man  ? 
The  daily  asseverations  of  those  accustom- 
ed to  any  acquired  habit,  are  sufficient  to 
establish  the  truth  of  the  assertion,  that 
the  pain  of  want  is  greater  in  acquired, 
than  in  natural  and  necessary  habits.  How 
often  do  we  hear  them  declare  they  would 
rather  be  deprived  of  a  meal's  victuals, 
than  forego  the  gratification  afforded  by 
indulgence  in  that  habit ! 

Thus  far  we  have  endeavoured  to  esta- 
blish the  doctrine,  of  secretions  being  the 
source  of  pleasurable  sensations,  by  dedu- 
cing our  arguments,  not  from  theoretical 
speculations,  but  from  plain  facts,  as  we 


47 

see  them  in  every  day's  occurrences,  or  as 
we  meet  with  them  in  the  more  obvious 
operations  of  nature.  We  have  found  that 
where  man  chooses  the  means  of  his  own 
gratification,  he  is  sure  to  select  such  as  have 
a  tendency  to  excite  secretion — that  by 
this  function  Nature  relieves  distress,  wards 
off  maladies,  and  rescues  from  the  iron  grasp 
of  disease  the  devoted  sufferer — and  that 
finally  it  is  in  the  form  of  secretion  that 
she  proffers  to  man  his  most  ecstatic  en- 
joyment. 

Did  inclination  dictate,  as  is  the  case 
with  those  theorists,  who  have  not  facts  to 
justify  their  assertions,  we  might  now  give 
our  minds  a  little  recreation  in  the  field  of 
fancy.  We  might  imagine  that  every  sense 
is  gratified  by  the  excitement  of  a  peculiar 
secretion.  Thus  the  rose's  fragrance — 
seraphic  strains  of  music — delicious  fruits — 
and  the  most  enchanting  landscape,  would 
only  charm,  in  proportion  as  they  produ- 
ced this  excitement  in  the  organs  of  smell. 


48 

hearing,  taste,  or  vision.  Conjecture  might 
even  remind  us  of  the  aqueducts  of  Cotun- 
nius;  and  intimate  that,  through  these 
channels,  passed  the  fluid  generated  by  har- 
monious airs.  But  these  notions  are  too 
chimerical — they  possess  too  flimsy  a  foun- 
dation to  be  enlisted  in  support  of  reality. 

Since  facts  warrant  us  in  ascribing  plea- 
sure to  secretion,  we  may  inveigh  most 
bitterly  against  those  cynic  philosophers, 
who  are  eternally  crying  that  "  man  was 
made  to  mourn" — we  may,  on  the  con- 
trary, assert,  that  every  particle  of  life, 
whether  it  exist  in  vegetable  or  animal 
matter,  is  given  for  enjoyment.  Where 
shall  we  find  a  plant,  from  the  cedar  to  the 
hyssop — where  shall  we  find  an  animal, 
from  the  extinct  mammoth  to  the  zoophyte, 
which  does  not  possess  a  secretory  function. 
The  vegetable  kingdom  abounds  with 
every  variety  of  secretion— from  the  orange 
we  may  obtain  the  most  delicate  liqueur. 
and  on  the  bark  of  the  reed  we  observe  a 


4y 

siliceous  deposit.  "  How  great  is  the  con- 
trast between  this  production,"  says  Smith, 
speaking  of  the  flinty  coat  of  grasses,  "  if 
it  be  a  secretion  of  the  tender  vegetable 
frame,  and  those  exhalations  which  consti- 
tute the  perfume  of  flowers !  one  is  among 
the  most  permanent  substances  in  nature, 
an  ingredient  in  the  primeval  mountains 
of  the  globe  ;  the  other,  the  invisible,  intan- 
gible breath  of  a  moment." 

When  we  thus  behold  every  thing,  that 
possesses  in  the  slightest  degree  a  living 
principle,  endowed  with  means  of  enjoy- 
ment; let  us  not  withhold  our  tribute 
of  praise  and  adoration  from  that  Being, 
who  is  the  Maker,  Supporter,  and  Go- 
vernor of  all. 


FINIS. 


JUL    21M2 


